When a Guitar Case Shuts Down an International Airport

A portion of Cleveland Hopkins International Airport was closed last week when a man left a guitar case unattended in a check-in area after he couldn’t afford to check the bag.

According to Cleveland.com, the unidentified 45-year-old man from Taberg, New York, reportedly left the guitar case on the sidewalk outside the ticketing area after he was told he could not use it as a suitcase and didn’t have the money to check the items.

Cleveland airport director Robert Kennedy revealed that a baggage handler first found the abandoned bag at about 2 p.m. local time. After notifying Transportation Security Administration employees, the Cleveland Police Department and a K-9 unit were called to the scene.

The police dog investigating the bag indicated something suspicious may be in the guitar case, so the explosion detection unit was brought to the scene. The case was removed from the area, x-rayed and physically examined before officials announced that it posed no danger to travelers.

Following the incident, the airport was operating normally again by 4 p.m. local time, but not before several passengers were grounded and others re-routed into safety zones. Flights at the facility continued taking off and landing as police conducted their investigation.

As for the man who left the bag unattended, Cleveland police spokeswoman Sgt. Jennifer Ciaccia said he was found and questioned by federal authorities before being released and allowed to board his flight.

The Cuyahoga County Prosecutor's Office will consider pressing charges against the man.

Last month, Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport’s Terminal One was temporarily closed after an unattended bag was discovered and police were forced to investigate, according to CBS Local. The local bomb squad was called, but nothing in the bag posed any danger to travelers.

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